Skyline Drive Vignettes

Sweet Virginia

Good times were had by all in April, as family converged on the south for one last time before the Kilpela relocation. Fun days and nights greeted the adventure goers. The hosts provided good eats, sweet tunes, and lots of laughs. 

Chillin"

It rained nearly every day that Jeni and I were in Virginia. 

Laku, Sam and Amanda's new cat loved to play. She's a fast mover though, and didn't want to stop long enough to pose for the camera.

Self-portrait.

Ah hah! It's easy to get a picture of "this little rat" (use a Danish accent when saying this), when Sam is holding him.

On Sunday we went bowling. Sam pulled out the stops, scoring some impressive games, over 150, two of three games. We all looked like pros.

Amanda takes aim.

Strike!

Wow. Is the ball there?

Rosa shoots the pins.

Jeni gets in her bowling stance.  

The food couldn't have been tastier on our trip. This pasta dish was one we'll have to make again.

Gettysburg

Sam, Jeni and I visited Gettysburg, stepping into history. It was amazing how small the battlefield that claimed so many lives was, just a mile across. 

This might be the worlds largest coffee pot. It doesn't look large in this photo, but probably fits at least two gallons of coffee in it.

We went through the museum at the park's entrance, which included artifacts, videos, maps and statistics of the battle at Gettysburg and other civil war battles. 

We started our auto tour at the northern portion of the confederate line. Don't know if these canons are real, but they looked cool.

Pointed toward the Union.

These wooden fences were everywhere.

That's Robert E. Lee behind me.  He rode his horse up this path on the third day of battle and told his troops they had fought valiantly, but it was time to retreat.

It started to rain, as it did many days on our Virginia Trip. 

There was a viewing tower that went up 100 feet. It gave a good perspective on the battle.

Mik and Sam on the Round Top. At the end of the third day of fighting, these rocks were strewn with human casualties. The Union Troops, with the uphill advantage defeated the confederates on the third day.

Standing on Little Round Top, the Devil's Den, where heavy casualties occurred can be seen clearly from here.

There were memorials for every state that fought in the battle here at Gettysburg. This was one of several for New York.

Sadly the civil war did not bring equality and freedom to many African Americans.  Many of them, even those that fought, faced severe poverty and discrimination after the war.  It would take over 100 years for blacks to experience equality in many cases.  We have come a long way today as a nation in this area, even having a black president.  I saw a US flag at Gettysburg that had "Southern Rights" written on it.  This does make my stomach churn a bit.  These "Southern Rights" were a tool that ignorant men and women used to shackle their black brothers and sisters and enslave them for their own evil purposes.  This is the shameful past of the south and one that should be remembered!  The sight of the confederate flag makes me a little sick knowing the traditions that stand behind it.